How to type hash (#)
Also called pound sign, number sign, octothorpe, hashtag.
Hold Shift with your right little finger and press the 3 key with your left middle finger. On a UK keyboard Shift+3 gives £ instead, and the hash is usually Alt Gr+3 or on its own key near Enter.
Which finger types #
- Finger
- Left middle
- Resting position
- D on the home row
- Shift
- Required, held by the other hand
- Hand
- left
No website can detect which finger you actually used — a browser reports the character, not the hand that produced it. The finger above is the one the standard touch typing layout assigns, and it is the one the lessons here train.
What # is used for
- Tags a topic on social platforms, which is where most people meet it.
- Starts a comment in Python, Ruby, shell scripts and YAML.
- Prefixes an id selector in CSS, and a heading in Markdown.
- Means “number” in American usage, as in #1.
Where it comes from
It began as an abbreviation of the Latin “libra pondo”, a pound in weight, written lb with a bar struck through it. Written quickly enough that bar-and-letters collapsed into the grid we now use. That is also why Americans call it the pound sign while the British reserve “pound” for £ — the two symbols are descendants of the same idea.
The mistake people make
Assuming it is where you last saw it. This is the most layout-dependent key in common use: US, UK and Mac keyboards all place it differently, and it is the key most likely to produce £ when you expected #.
If the key is missing or gives the wrong character
- UK keyboards: Alt Gr+3, or the dedicated key beside Enter.
- Mac UK: Option+3.
- Windows: hold Alt and type 35 on the numeric keypad.
Practise it properly
Knowing which finger owns a key is not the same as using it without thinking. The Typometer course blocks on the wrong key and names the finger for every one, so the habit forms rather than the knowledge.
Other keys
Related guides
Free, and no account needed.
- Start at level 1: the home rowFind F and J without looking, one key at a time.
- How to learn touch typingWhat actually works, what to ignore, and how long it takes.
- The full typing course415 levels from the home row to code and professional documents.
- Untimed typing practicePractise without a clock and focus on the keys you keep missing.